As more conditions have been capable of treatment, there has been an increasing interest in diagnosis. The diagnosis need not be related solely to a diseased condition, but also monitoring therapeutic dosages administered for such conditions. For the most part, this requires samples being transferred to a clinical laboratory, where skilled technical help is available, and the analyte could be measured accurately. However, in many instances it is desirable to have means for measuring a particular analyte at a doctor's office, a counseling service, or at home.
For determinations at home, it is necessary that the methodology be simple, free of sophisticated measurements, require a minimum of handling of reagents and mixing, as well as a minimum of accurate timing.
Toward this end a device has been recently described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,959,324. In this device, an eluent chamber is provided, where the eluent is maintained in a scorable container. Movement of a slide results in the puncture of the container, where the eluent is then released to be absorbed by a bibulous member. Despite the fact that the eluent container sits above a well into which the eluent is to flow, it is found that in many cases upon scoring or ripping of the container, the eluent is not released into the well. This results in a failure of the device, which is unacceptable for commercial application. It is therefore desirable to find means which allows for the assured transfer of the eluent from the container to the well to allow for the assay to be carried out.